Gen info
• Donella lanceolata is a plant species in the family Sapotaceae.
- Etymology: the genus name Donella honors Scottish botanist George Don. The specific epithet lanceolata derives from Latin, meaning "lance-shaped", referring to its narrow, tapering leaves.

Botany
• Growth form: A bushy, small to medium-sized tree that grows between 12 - 18 m tall. Young twigs are covered in fine, red hairs. Foliage: Leaves are glossy, elongated, lance-shaped, measuring 11.4 - 15.2 cm long by 3 - 3.8 cm wide with a narrow tail-like tip. Lateral veins are very fine, numerous, almost straight and parallel, linked by a fine nearly straight intra-marginal nerve close along the margin. Flowers: Flowers are borne on an inflorescence of 5 to many-flowered, found along the axils. They are small, cream white, fragrant, bell-shaped, 5 to 7 overlapping lobes, measuring 25mm wide. It is a bushy, small to medium-sized tree that grows between 12 - 18 m tall. Young twigs are covered in fine, red hairs. Fruit: Fruit is round to faintly lobed, pulpy, measuring 2.5 - 3.8 cm wide, ripening to yellow. Each fruit contains 5 bright brown, flattened seeds, about 1.5 cm long. (Flora & Fauna Web)

Distribution
- Native to the Philippines. (1) (2)
- In low elevation primary forests. In Luzon: Cagayan; Mindoro, Negros, Palawan. (2)
- Also native to Assam, Bangladesh, Borneo, Cambodia, China South-Central, China Southeast, Hainan, India, Jawa, Laos, Madagascar, Malaya, Myanmar, New Guinea, Queensland, Solomon Is., Sri Lanka, Sulawesi, Sumatera, Thailand, Vietnam. (1)

Constituents
- Fruits contain higher concentrations of potassium, boron, calcium, iron, manganese, and phosphorus than other fruits. Fruits contain amino acids viz., aspartic acid, glutamic acid, proline, and lysine at 37.6%, 9.5%, 6.1%, and 5.4% of total amino acid concentration, respectively. Leaves contain high amounts of Ca (10,125 mg/kg), K (7,000 mg/kg), Mg (4,125 mg/kg), P (900 mg/kg), Mn (640 mg/kg), Fe (330 mg/kg), Cu (17.3 mg/kg), and Zn (16.5 mg/kg). (4)

Parts used
Bark, roots, leaves.

Uses
Edibility
- Fruit and seeds are edible.
- Ripe fruit consumed raw by local people in Assam, Mizoram, and tribal people in Western Ghats.
- Fruit is an excellent source of dietary fiber.
Folkloric
- No reported folkloric medicinal use in the Philippines.
- Bark, roots, and leaves used as remedy for various maladies: gastro-intestinal disorders, articular rheumatism, and high blood sugar. Bark decoction used for treatment of malaria and yellow fever. (4)
- In Assam, India, seed formulation used for treatment of pneumonia. Fruits used as deworming agent.
- Leaves squeezed and used as soothing ointment or moisturizer for treating dry skin, skin eruptions, and skin itches. Leaves used for treatment of diarrhea, stomachache, and indigestion. Preparations of leaves, root, and bark used on wounds, cuts, sprains, and bruises to facilitate healing. Roots and seed extracts used to stop bleeding from fresh cuts, injuries and wounds. (5)
- In Ayurvedic medicine, fruits used for treatment of leucorrhea, eye diseases, ascariasis infestation in children, and constipation.
Others
- Fodder: Fruits and leaves are fodder for cows, pigs, goats, and cattle. (4)
- Wood: Moderately heavy and hard. Used for general house construction, planking, furniture, flooring, interior trims, veneer and plywood, and handles for light tools. (4)
- Crafts: Seeds from mature seeds are knitted together and used as musical instrument or used as beads for making necklaces and other decorative items. (4)
- Potential: (1) Wine: Potential in wine making industry because of high total soluble solids content (22° Brix) and astringency of fruits. (2) Natural mucilage: Natural mucilage from fruits has mucoadhesive property with potential as alternative to conventional synthetic or semisynthetic mucoadhesive agents. (3) Soap: Species has been identified as a promising source of oilseed, yielded a golden yellow-colored oil with oil yield of 35.2% along with high saponification value (204.73) suggesting potential in the soap industry. (4)

Studies
• No studies found.

Availability
- Wild-crafted.
- Live plants, dried plant parts in the cybermarket..

Additional Sources and Suggested Readings
(1)
Donella lanceolata (Blume) Aubrév / KEW: Plants of the World Online
(2)
Sapotaceae: Donella lanceolata / Co's Digital Flora of the Philippines
(3)
Chrysophyllum lanceolatum / S I Wiselius / PROSEA: Plant Resources of South-East Asia
(4)
Chrysophyllum lanceolatum (Blume) A.DC (Chapter 7) / Kankana Deka, Bornali Gogoi, Utpal Barua / ResearchGate
(5)
An Ethnomedicinal Study of Important Medicinal Plants in Kudermukh National Park of Karnataka: A Review / Rahul Pradhan, T. N. Manohara, H. S. Suresh and Amit Prakash Nayak / International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences, 2020; 9(9): pp 3477-3490 / ISSN: 2319-7706 /
DOI: 10.20546/ijcmas.2020.909.432
(6)
Donella lanceolata / Ayurvedic Medicinal Plants of Sri Lanka Compendium Ver 3

DOI: It is not uncommon for links on studies/sources to change. Copying and pasting the information on the search window or using the DOI (if available) will often redirect to the new link page. (Citing and Using a (DOI) Digital Object Identifier)